“One child, one teacher, one book, one pen can change the world.”
–Malala Yousafzai
Who has not heard the name of Malala Yousafzai, the girl who stood strong for girl’s education against Taliban. The youngest person to receive Nobel Prize. The girl who was shot in head by Taliban gunman. She survived and strongly continues to bring change. She is ground breaking Pakistani activist.
Early Life
She was born on 12th July 1997 in Mingora district of Pakistan. She was named Malala after a famous female Pashtun poet – Malalai (warrior from Afghanistan). Her father Ziauddin Yousafzai is also an educational advocate and runs chain of public schools. In 2009 at age of just 11 years she started writing blog on BBC, expressing her views on life under Taliban, she wrote under pen name- Gul Makai.
As Taliban grew in the area, they issued various restrictions for people; they banned television, music, and women venturing out for shopping or education. Many girls school were blown up and girl students stayed at home fearing reprisals from Taliban. Malala and her father received death threats for outspoken views. Her father was concerned for her safety and wanted Malala to move outside Swat area (where Taliban was in control) to study. But she refused to leave. This was her reaction when asked to leave, “How can we do that? You were the one who said that if we believe in something greater than our lives, then our voices will only multiply ever if we are dead. We can’t disown our campaign!’’ .After her blog ended, she was featured in documentary made by New York Times and her identity as writer of blog was revealed. She received Pakistan’s first National Youth Peace Prize in 2011, and she was even nominated by Archbishop Desmond Tutu for the International Children’s Peace Prize. [1]
The threat starts
Her criticism for Taliban made Taliban leaders meet to take action against her and they voted to kill her in 2012.
On 9 October 2012, a masked man entered her school bus and threatened that he will kill all if they don’t tell who Malala is, she was identified and the gunman and he shot her at head which went through her head, neck and shoulder. She was in critical condition and everyone thought she wouldn’t survive because her organs were failing. She was shifted to military hospital in Peshawar. Later on 15 October she was transferred to Birmingham in United Kingdom. She was out of coma and responded well to treatment and she was discharged in January. She shifted with her family to West Midlands and continued her studies there. In her book she writes, ’It was miracle I was alive’. They wanted to kill her to remove symbol of education for once and forever from Pakistan but she fought and her courage and will power she recovered to continue her fight.
The Bright Future
Since 2013, she studied at Edgbaston High School in Birmingham. She has continues to bring the change with her family living in Birmingham. In 2015, a documentary about Yousafzai was shortlisted for the Oscars ‘He Named Me Malala.’ In 2017, she began studying PPE (Philosophy, Politics and Economics) at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford University. She completed her graduation in 2020. Apple TV+ has announced programming partnership with Malala, she will be programming documentaries, comedies; dramas which will help her inspire people around the world. She’s also leading a book club for subscription book service –Literati. This club will highlight voices that have historically been underrepresented-women writers and new voices.
Awards
- In recognition of her work she was awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought by European Parliament in 2013.
- In October 2014, Yousafzai became the youngest person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, at just 17 years old; she received the award along with Indian children’s rights activist Kailash Satyarthi.
- Former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon described Yousafzai as “a brave and gentle advocate of peace who, through the simple act of going to school, became a global teacher.”
- In April 2017, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delegated Yousafzai as a U.N. Messenger of Peace.
- She was also given honorary Canadian citizenship in April 2017. She is the sixth person and the youngest in the country’s history to receive the honor.
The Malala Fund and other initiatives
In 2013, Yousafzai and her father launched the Malala Fund, which works to ensure girls around the world have access to 12 years of free, safe, quality education. On her eighteenth birthday celebration, in July 2015, Yousafzai kept on making a move on global education by opening a school for Syrian refugee girls in Lebanon. Its costs is covered by the Malala Fund, the school was intended to concede almost 200 young ladies from the ages of 14 to 18. Books instead of bullets was her motto.
Books
I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban
This is an autobiography by Malala Yousafzai released in October 2013 which is an international bestseller. The book was abridged in 2018 for young chapter book readers as Malala: My Story of Standing Up for Girls’ Rights.
Malala’s Magic Pencil
Yousafzai published a children’s picture book about her life in October 2017. Malala’s Magic Pencil introduces her childhood in Pakistan through a well-known TV show where a young boy uses his magic pencil to help people. In the book, the magic pencil instructs readers how to make the world a better place.
‘We Are Displaced’
Published in 2018, We Are Displaced: My Journey and Stories from Refugee Girls around the World explores Yousafzai’s story as well as the stories of girls she met in her travels to refugee camps in Colombia, Guatemala, Syria and Yemen.
Malala Day
At Yousafzai’s 2013 speech at the United Nations, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon pronounced July 12th – Yousafzai’s birthday – ‘Malala Day’ in honor of the young leader’s activism to ensure education for all children. At the announcement, Ban said, “Malala chose to mark her 16th birthday with the world. No child should have to die for going to school. Nowhere should teachers fear to teach or children fear to learn. Together, we can change the picture.”
What we learn from Malala
With guns you can kill terrorists; with education you can kill terrorism.”
― Malala Yousafzai
Overcome Obstacles
Malala has sacrificed her life fighting for her beliefs. Her commitment to standing up for what she believes in even under the toughest circumstances as she turns fear into bravery is an inspiration to us all. “They thought a bullet would silence us, but they failed. Nothing changed in my life except this: Weaknesses, fear and hopelessness died. Strength, power and courage was born.” She said in her UN speech. We must not consider obstacles as hurdles for success but they are the extra learning which makes us strong.
Replace weakness with strength, and fear with courage
This may appear to be one of those things that are easier said than done, but sometimes it’s just a matter of perspective. Don’t let negativity shut you down. Strive to be the strongest, best, most positive person you can be. The things you can accomplish are mind boggling! You are strong; just you don’t know your super powers. Find and use your powers and your potential.
Never doubt your ability to impact the world.
We live in a world of over 7-billion individuals. Each person is different. Each person on earth has something unique to offer the world. What’s your gift? What wonderful things do you have to offer? Don’t ever doubt for a second the power you have to make a difference. She changed the world from the age of 11.
Be humble
“I tell my story not because it is unique, but because it is not. It is the story of many girls.”
Despite her many achievements, awards and fame (she is the youngest person ever to win a Nobel Prize) Malala always speaks and acts with kindness, grace and humility.
Never Give up
No matter what, never give up. She teaches us to never get bogged down by difficulties instead make difficult bog down in front of us. She was severely injured and even her family lost hope that she would be able to survive after she was shot in head, but she had undeterring will and she didn’t gave up and emerged stronger.
Lesser known facts
• To date, Malala has received over 40 awards and honors for her bravery and activism, including an honorary doctorate from the University of King’s College in 2014 .
•A Grammy Award for Best Children’s Album (for the audiobook I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up for Education and Changed the World) in 2015.
•When Malala turned 18, she opened an all-girls school for Syrian refugees, calling on leaders from around the world to provide “books not bullets.”
• In 2015 an asteroid was named in honor of Malala.
• In April 2017 Malala became a UN Messenger of Peace.
•Time Magazine featured her among the 100 most influencial people in year 2013
Quotes
“We realize the importance of our voices only when we are silenced.”
“When the whole world is silent, even one voice becomes powerful.”
-Malala Yousafzai
Malala Yousafzai’s life, devoted to the fight for civil rights, education and women, seems to follow a winding path, filled with successes, international recognition, and strong, brave acts. This, however, also causes violent reactions from the Taliban groups that opposed her. Despite this, Yousafzai is never afraid to tell the truth and fight for justice. She wants to become the Prime Minister; following in the footsteps of her role model late Benazir Bhutto, and aspires to use that position to serve her nation. With the threat of terrorism and fear, a brave young 17 year old girl defied the odds by being resilient, hopeful, and courageous. She also has grown into a confident woman who believes in the importance of education. When you are motivated, you will not stop until you achieve your goal by passing opposition and fear. These words by Malala Yousafzai shows how powerful and clear perspective she has about her acts and life.
“Life isn’t just about taking in oxygen and giving out carbon dioxide.”
Author Bio:
Urvi Shah is a CA Aspirant from Nagpur, Maharashtra. She is a budding writer and an avid reader. She loves to craft her imagination into words. She calls herself painter of thoughts. She is an amateur writer and poet. With observation mode always on, she spends her time scribbling her thoughts in diary.
